Politically, the country of the troubadours was divided into six principal portions. On the eastern extremity was Savoy, lying on both sides of the Alps. Next came Provence, situated east of the Rhone. Contigu ous thereto, and skirting the Mediterranean, was the county of Toulouse. Then followed Aquitaine with its dependencies, extending northwards to the Loire and eastwards to the Bay of Biscay. And in Spain there were the kingdoms of Navarre and Aragon; the latter including the ancient county of Barcelona ruled by branches of the same family.